M. Soccer looks for the back of the net

Penn coach George O'Neil is pleased with his team in all respects but one - scoring. The Penn men's soccer team spent the past week trying to keep its positive attitude. After losing their third straight 1-0 game, the Quakers are hoping to put some points on the board this weekend as they head to upstate New York to compete in the Hartwick Invitational. In starting the season 2-0 with wins against Harvard and La Salle, the Quakers' offense amassed five goals, but has been hurt lately by injuries to forwards Steve Cohen and Morgan Blackwell. Penn feels the opportunities have been there on offense, but it has just not been able to capitalize. In practice this past week, Penn (2-3) focused on offensive drills. "We were really happy with our play last weekend," Blackwell said. "Besides not scoring, we did everything else right. We dominated the other teams both games. We just did not find the back of the net. We are going to concentrate on that this weekend." The Quakers have been pleased with the play of their defense. Led by Tom Hughes, Brad Copeland and goalkeeper Michael O'Connor, the Penn defense has only given up six goals in their five games. This weekend Penn will meet formidable opponents. Saturday's game in Oneonta, N.Y., is against the host school Hartwick (3-4-1), which is coming off an 2-0 loss against Drexel last Saturday. The biggest test for the Quakers comes Sunday against Virginia Commonwealth (7-1-1). VCU, a current vote receiver in the latest Soccer America top 20, includes 11 foreign players on its 24-man roster. Penn coach George O'Neill believes the Quakers are going to have to limit turnovers and distribute the ball well between the defense and offense. "We are going to try the best we can to create and score goals," O'Neill said. "We are going to continue working on closing people down and making it difficult for them to get through." Trying not to let frustration set in, the Quakers are hoping to put up some offensive numbers this weekend. "We are trying to keep a positive attitude, but it is definitely frustrating," O'Connor said. "Two 1-0 losses to teams we should have beat is frustrating? Once we get one goal, we'll get five. We need that confidence." Both Cohen and Blackwell are expected to be in the lineup. While Blackwell said he is at 100 percent, Cohen's overall condition is still questionable. Although this is a non-conference weekend, the Quakers are heading to New York with a bus load of intensity, trying to put a stop to their three-game losing streak.

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